Summer Plans
Awh yeahhhh, my final exam went relatively smoothly on Tuesday, and as a result, I’m free from the stressful grip of finals week at UVA and summer is (basically) here. Thus, I figured I’d share with you all my summer plans. I’m back in DC for only a few days before I jetset off to New York City on Sunday to become a star. And by “become a star” I actually mean “work as a lowly intern at VICE Records and Magazine”, but I’m ridiculously excited to be doing anything even remotely affiliated with VICE, so I’m definitely looking forward to my time in NYC. Most of you are probably well aware that Bloc Party are without a doubt my favorite band, and the fact that they’re signed to VICE only compounds my excitement for my internship there. I’ll be working at VICE from May 15th to June 30th, and will be attending the VICE-curated Intonation Music Festival on the 24th and 25th, where I will finally see the unadultered glory that is Bloc Party’s live show after two years of trying to see them live. And… speaking of shows, that brings me to my next area of interest, my summer show schedule. NYC’s live music scene is unparalleled, and I’m extremely excited to catch all the great bands who are playing in the city this summer. Below is my complete summer show schedule, with mp3s:
Summer Show Schedule: [all songs highly recommended]
May 17, NYC: Art Brut w/ Art Brut 47, Think About Life
MP3: “Good Weekend” - Art Brut
May 18, NYC: Architecture In Helsinki
MP3: “Do The Whirlwind” - Architecture In Helsinki
May 24, NYC: The Books (Free Show)
MP3:
May 28, NYC: Page France w/ Canada (21+)
MP3: “Bridge” - Page France
MP3: “Record Function” - Canada
June 2, NYC: Super Furry Animals (Free Show)
MP3: “Lazer Beam” - Super Furry Animals
June 3, NYC: Snow Patrol w/ The Duke Spirit
MP3: “Somewhere A Clock Is Ticking” - Snow Patrol
MP3: “Cuts Across The Land” - The Duke Spirit
June 4, NYC: Tapes ‘n Tapes w/ Cold War Kids*
MP3: “Hang Me Up To Dry” - Cold War Kids
June 9, NYC: The Spinto Band w/ The Lovely Feathers
MP3: “Oh Mandy” - Spinto Band
MP3: “Frantic” - The Lovely Feathers
June 24-25, Chicago: Intonation Music Festival
(Bloc Party, The Streets, Joes Gonzalez, Annie, et. al)
MP3: “Skeleton” - Bloc Party
MP3: “Could Well Be In” - The Streets
MP3: “Hand On Your Heart” - Jose Gonzalez
MP3: “Heartbeats” - Annie
June 29, NYC: Jose Gonzalez (21+) OR We Are Scientists w/ The Double
MP3: “Hand On Your Heart” - Jose Gonzalez
MP3: “Lousy Reputation” - We Are Scientists
July 19, Martha’s Vineyard: Willy Mason
MP3: “Oxygen” - Willy Mason
July 28, Boston: Bloc Party w/ Secret Machines and Mew [best show ever?]
MP3: “Always New Depths” - Bloc Party
MP3: “Sad and Lonely” - Secret Machines
MP3: “Am I Wry? No” - Mew
After June 30th I leave NYC to spend the rest of the summer at my summer home on Martha’s Vineyard (I know, indie cred obliterated), hence there’s only one more show after that date, Willy Mason’s show at Outerland (formerly the Hot Tin Roof) on MV on July 19th, which I couldn’t be more excited for. But back to the NYC shows, I’ve already scoured Oh My Rockness, but please tip me off to any shows you think I can’t afford to miss in the city this summer that I haven’t listed above. Keep in mind that, while it wouldn’t be impossible for me to get into a 21 and over show as I’ve got a so-so ID, the fact that technically I’m under 21 is a bit of a logistical hinderance.
*Unfortunately, I was unable to actually secure tickets for this show before it sold out, which was fairly quickly due to the fact that Tapes ‘n Tapes is everybody and their grandmother’s new favorite band. The thing is, I don’t even want to see Tapes ‘n Tapes, for some reason they don’t really do it for me, and I’ll stay for their set and stuff, but it’s Cold War Kids I’m dying to see. So if anyone has an extra ticket or something and would like to sell it to me (or give it to me?), please contact me via e-mail (DerekDavies@aol.com) or IM (AIM = DerekDavies).
Finally, Bloc Party have just announced nine new US tour dates, though they only play Boston and NYC before heading out west for the remainder of the tour. But these tour dates happen to feature maybe the best support ever, in Secret Machines and GWFAS favorites Mew, for the east coast dates, and fucking Broken Social Scene on the west coast dates, which is, suffice it to say, ridiculous. I’m going to be attempting to catch their Boston show, which should be no problem as long as tickets don’t sell out in negative three seconds like Radiohead’s NYC dates did, but I don’t anticipate that happening. I hope everyone else is as excited about their summer plans as I am, feel free to share any particularly awesome music-related plans you have in the comments.